Is my wife's aggression due to Seroxat or Depo-Provera?

My wife was diagnosed as suffering from depression about six months ago and has been taking 20mg of Seroxat each day. I have read that there may be an...

07/12/2011

Question

My wife was diagnosed as suffering from depression about six months ago and has been taking Seroxat each day.

I have read that there may be an issue in relation to taking Seroxat whilst on the contraceptive Depo-Provera, which my wife is also on, and I was hoping that you may be able give some advice on this.

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It appears that the Seroxat is causing some changes in my wife in terms of aggressive behaviour and general irritability/mood-swings.

Is this combination ok, or are there potential issues in using these drugs in combination?

Any information that you may be able to supply would be greatly appreciated.

Additionally details of support groups for people who have partners suffering from depression would also be useful.

Answer

I am sorry to hear about your wife's depression, and hope that she is responding to treatment.

While it is true that both Seroxat and the oral contraceptive pill both affect enzymes in the liver that break down the drugs, the effect is minimal especially if the patient is taking both medications long term.

There is certainly no issue that would affect her health and no dose adjustment is necessary.

I think that if there are problems with mood swings this is more likely to be due to the Depo-Provera than the Seroxat, which normally helps these symptoms.

Care is in fact needed when using Depo-Provera in patients with a history of depression.

I think your wife should make sure her doctor is aware of these problems and consider whether this is the best contraceptive method for your wife.

As far as support groups are concerned, there is good information on the NetDoctor web site, go to the support group section.

I hope this is helpful and that things soon start to improve for your wife.

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